Breaking

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Google Tests One-Click “Add To Circles” Button In Search Results

Google is finding more and more ways to integrate Google+ into all of their other products. The latest tweak: a one-click button, smack dab in the middle of your search results, for adding the author of the relative content to a Google+ circle.

Google has been fiddling with the integration of Google+ into search results for weeks. It began with the integration of the “+1″ button (which, if you recall, actually existed before Google+) next to every result, and later grew to include blogger/author headshots (complete with links to their Plus profiles) next to certain content.

This latest tweak is really just the evolution of the aforementioned addition of author bios. By removing that one step (having to click into the author’s profile to add them), adding someone on Google+ becomes less of a deliberate decision and more of an impulse move. It’s just further proof that, in the Battle of Facebook vs. Google+, Google is playing an entirely different game.

Most of Google’s tweaks regarding Plus in results seem to focus on drawing attention to bloggers/writers/online personalities — which, while I’m obviously a bit subjective here, is a rather keen move. While we’re but a drop in the hat in the grand scheme of things, writers do have a notable degree of influence (whether they intentionally utilize that influence or not) over the public’s perception of a product. Funneling followers to writers could easily give them the perception that a product is more lively than it actually is, which may in turn spin their writings on the product in a more positive way. Clever, Google.

Not seeing the changes? Don’t worry: like most things Google does, it appears that they’re testing this one on a small handful of users first.